THEY promised to storm Southport with hard rock at its very best – and they succeeded.

One Last Run are now the band to beat in the prestigious Band Royale competition, being staged every Friday in the resort's Fox and Goose pub.

And we're only a couple of weeks into the four-month-long contest.

They blew everyone away in their heat, winning not only the votes of the audience but also the approval of the judges (Andrew Jones of acoustic duo Just By Chance and myself).

I featured One Last Run in this column last month when bassist Chris Smith explained the advantage of having lead singer Becky Roberts in their line-up: “There aren't really many riff orientated bands out there with female vocalists at the moment so we felt there's a gap in the market. It's not that common either, so it's a good marketing point for our band.”

But Becky, former lead singer with Hardwired, is by no means merely a marketing tool. Her strong vocals lift the band to new heights, especially with their debut single, Close My Eyes (which you can download for free).

The rest of the band comprises of rhythm/lead guitarist Rob Leach (a former member with Chris Smith of Saturn Unwatched, while Chris was also a member of Driven Overboard), drummer Dan Brown and rhythm/lead guitarist Jack Pennington.

Their Band Royale performance was only their third live gig since forming earlier this year. They are definitely a band to watch out for in the future, especially in Band Royale.

Meanwhile, also through to the Band Royale quarter-finals are One Mark Off and The Castros (see below).

It's heat four tomorrow night at the Fox and Goose with Tripcode, Dave Aston, Animus, Friday And The Criminal, Dint and LSP. It all starts at 8.30pm.

For more details of the bands or Band Royal itself, check out their Facebook pages.

The Castros

IT was good to meet members of new Formby rock band The Castros in Southport the other night.

And then it struck me. I recognise those faces.

Three of the four-strong line-up used to be in Just Russell, who featured in several Live Sounds columns of yesteryear.

In fact, I first meet them seven years ago when they entered the very first Band Royale competition which was staged in the Cafe Matisse in the resort's Cambridge Arcade.

And it's true what they say. Musicians, like the rest of us, do mature with age.

I was really impressed with the exciting and individual sound they have created, especially with their latest song Forward In Time (you can listen to it on Soundcloud).

And they delivered a strong and impressive set in their heat of Band Royale at the Fox and Goose and quite rightly went straight through to the quarter-finals.

The three former Just Russell members are lead singer Daniel Ward, bassist Tom Whaley, and drummer Tom Percy. Lead singer Oliver Knock is the fourth member of The Castros.

You can see an interview with the lads plus other bands in my video of heat two of Band Royale. Just go to Youtube and put Martin Hovden in the search box.

And you can find more details of The Castros (including their links to Cuba and Fidel) on their Facebook page.

Band news

WHEN I was a lad and went on school trips (usually to North Wales), I needed at least a week to recover.

Not so these days. Three members of Southport band One Mark Off returned from a week-long geography trip to Iceland just two days before entering Band Royale.

The lads – Cameron Maerevoet, Ben Sutton and Kurt Kenningley - joined lead singer Lucy Brindle and drummer Josh Knight (all students at Stanley High School) on stage at the Fox and Goose for a very competent and confident performance. They went straight through to the next round.

I've been following their progress since they started late last year. And they are definitely getting better every time I see them.

They've been booked to play at this year's Manor Farm Musical Festival in Hesketh Bank in July. Other acts playing the festival include Philippa Hanna who has just finished touring with Rebecca Ferguson and The Gentlemen.